Page 26

CHAPTER 26

AMELIA

I’m on the edge of my seat as I wait to hear what she has to say. It’s as if I’m on the precipice of a cliff, trying to keep myself from tumbling over. I’m breathing heavily, my heart pounding. There have been a million things rolling through my mind. Is he barely hurt? Is it life-changing? Is he on the cusp of death? It’s all crowding into my chest, making it feel as if an elephant is sitting there. I want to rip off the clothes I’m wearing and take a long deep breath, but I can’t. I can’t until I find out how Tristan is doing.

In the short amount of time we’ve been together, he’s become my life. He’s become everything I want, everything I need, and I’m terrified to live this life without him. There isn’t one without him. Although he was forced upon me, I’ve come to count on him. He makes my life better, my heart happy, and brings a smile to my face.

She taps her nails against the marble of the counter before looking over at me. “With everything happening, I believe I need to introduce myself to you officially.”

I think back, all the interactions the two of us have had together. I don’t know her name. I’ve never called her anything other than my detail. I’m ashamed of myself. That’s not how I was raised, to treat someone who protects me as hired help. I try to remember why I’ve never asked her. Maybe it was because I didn’t want to get too close and not have someone I’ve thought of as a friend go away.

“You’re right.” I smile. “I’m so sorry I’ve never asked you before. What is your name? If you’re going to be here with us, we need to know that. We don’t call people ‘details’ when they’re a part of our everyday family. And trust me, that’s how I feel about anyone who works with us daily. You’re a part of the family.”

She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth. I can tell she wants to say something about that, but she’s struggling. I keep speaking, hoping to bring her out of her shell. “Everyone will tell you that as queen, you’re not supposed to have favorites. You’re not supposed to bring them further into the fold of your life, but I can’t help it. That’s not who I am. That’s not who I want other people to know me as, which is why I’m doing these daily transmissions to the people. We all need this right now. If I’m not reaching out, holding my hand for others to grasp onto, they’re going to feel lonely, as if the leaders of this country do not care, and that’s just not the case. So if Tristan can’t do it, I’m going to do it.”

“My name…my name is…Maddie. Matilda, really, but everyone calls me Maddie.”

“Matilda.” I grin. “I loved that story as a kid.”

She pushes her eyes upward to the heavens. “So did my mom, which is why I was named that. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Amelia.”

Her eyes are warm, and that’s what I’m counting on more than anything. I need a friend, not just a protector. Only having Shannon around has been hard. I like her, but at the same time, being with the same person for an extended period is almost suffocating. “You too.”

I reach out my hand for her. It’s a firm handshake. I don’t expect less, but it’s important that we meet each other in the middle. “Now please tell me about Tristan.”

She licks her lips and pulls a phone up from her pocket, scrolling up. “I have a video for you, but first, so you’re not shocked by what he looks like, I want to explain what happened.”

My stomach clenches. Why would I be shocked at what he looks like? What has he been through? After all of this, is he gonna be the same man he was before? How could he? My fingers wring with worry as I wait to hear what she has to say.

“They were attacked,” she begins slowly and carefully. “It was a surprise, and they weren’t prepared. Someone broke into their encampment first and then the tent that Tristan and Parker were in. They managed to get out.”

Shannon reaches out, grabbing my hand with hers. There’s a but to what she’s saying. Neither of us wants to hear that anything is wrong with the men we love, but it’s hard. It’s hard to know they are somewhere and we’re nowhere near them. “They took off running to where there was an armored vehicle waiting for them. However, right before they could get on, there was an explosion near where they were, and both of them were knocked backward.”

She stops for a second, looking at us. More than likely making sure we can take whatever else she’s going to tell us.

“They have a lot of cuts on their faces because of debris, but they’re okay. I want to reiterate—they are okay. There are some more injuries besides the cuts. There are some cracked ribs, but nothing that’s going to be lifelong and nothing that you’re going to have to worry about.”

I breathe a sigh of relief. None of this is going to interrupt our lives together. Not that it was make it or break it, but that’s been one of my biggest fears. I’ve been worried if I was faced with the decision to take care of him the rest of our lives, I wouldn’t be strong enough.

“They are okay, but they’re pissed about what happened. I don’t know a whole lot about it because we’re on a need-to-know basis, but I do know that there are plans being moved forward, which is why I’m here with you. There have been threats made, and that is why I’m here.”

Shannon rolls her lips together. “Can you be honest with us? Does this mean that we are going to make a big…” Shannon stops, then starts again. “Does this mean that we’re going to do what I know neither of them want to do? Are we going to bomb the other country? Are the Calders going down?”

Maddie doesn’t say anything, but the look on her face tells us everything we need to know. I gasp, covering my mouth with my hand. That must have been a really hard decision for Tristan to make. I know it’s one he didn’t want to.

“Amelia, you need to prepare yourself. None of us know what the outcome of this will be. However, we know that making this decision is dangerous. It puts us right back in the crosshairs of the Calders. Which means you are the one who is in danger. Tristan is heavily protected on the battlefield. You? You’re a sitting duck.”

“Right back in the crosshairs?” I question if we’ve ever left them. We didn’t do anything to start this in the first place. They wanted our little country. They thought we wouldn’t fight, and here we are, fighting with everything we have. “And don’t worry about me. I can handle myself. If they want to come for me, they can. I have no doubt my husband has put enough protection in place that they won’t be able to get to me.”

I’m debating on whether I want to keep speaking. How much does Maddie know? There’s no way I want to spill Tristan’s secrets, but it’s imperative she understand where I’m coming from.

“Tristan is not going to let this go. He loves the people too much. He loves himself too much. There’s so much pride. His mother died here. She’s buried here. He’s not giving it up easily, as he shouldn’t.”

My mind drifts to the beautiful man who is my husband. I can only imagine how this is tearing him apart. No matter what he tries to portray in public, he is so empathetic and has such a great heart that this must be killing him. Finally, I ask. “How can I support him?” I firm my bottom lip and look at her as if I don’t have a fear in the world, yet I am scared to death. She runs her hands through her hair.

“I need you to make another video and address tonight.”

I’m confused. “I’ve already been doing that.”

“Yes.” She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth, “but you need to announce that you agree with everything Tristan is doing. That you are behind him one hundred percent, and you feel as if there’s no other way after what happened today.”

I swallow roughly. This is hard. It’s not going to be easy, and I’m not sure if this country will ever forgive me if this goes bad. However, I know that I have to stand behind Tristan. He wouldn’t do this if he felt like there was another option, and he’s been close to death more times than I care to count.

This one could have ended him, and now we’ve got to end this.

We didn’t start it, but we’re damn sure going to finish it.